Things to see and do Central

Located just outside the walls of Mdina, this small museum is built on the site of an ancient and wealthy Roman mansion, which was built around the middle of the ^1st century BC but remained in use throughout the ^1st century AD and possibly into the ^2nd century as well. The museum houses sumptuous mosaics found here in 1881. They are among the best-preserved remains of the Roman presence in the Rabat and Mdina region. The Domvs Romana highlights the private life and habits of an ancient Roman aristocrat. The central motif on the mosaic floor of the peristyle is a pair of doves perched on a crater, reminiscent of the "doves that drink from Sosos", a motif that was very famous and also widely disseminated at the time. The museum displays Roman artefacts found throughout the ancient city: amphorae, domestic accessories, marble slabs and more. The Muslim tombstones that once covered the graves of a cemetery that occupied the site in medieval times, and which were found during excavations of the site, are also part of the permanent exhibition. This is one of the highlights of the visit. It is the only museum to present a set of marble statues of the emperor Claudius and his family - works of art usually found in public spaces - which can be seen, here, in a private home.

This "national park" is just a policed green space much appreciated by the Maltese. People come here for jogging, barbecues, cycling and exhibitions. There's also an open-air theater surrounded by a small park. The view over Mdina from the stands is very pleasant. Large parking lots and straight stretches are popular with tuning fans, who on Friday and Saturday evenings take to the skids with their cars complete with fins and stickers.

It is located on the premises of a former British army airfield. Local crafts of watermarks, which you can see executed on site, ceramics, pottery, sweaters, work of glass and leather, lace, wicker furniture, but also costumes and even costumes of knight!

The Benedictine nuns of Mdina are first mentioned in 1450, on the site of a medieval women's hospital, enlarged and completely restored in 1625. The Order is governed by very strict rules: nuns are never allowed to leave the convent, even after death. They are buried in the crypt, and the only male visitors allowed are the doctor and the plasterer-painter when work is being carried out. The public can visit the adjoining chapel, but the nuns don't open it every day, so you'll have to take your chances.

Nearly twenty nuns currently live here in total isolation, devoting their days to prayer and tending the garden. Needless to say, tourists can't visit either.

Located at the end of Mesquita Street, on the square with its small bar and pastizzi, under stone arches, amidst fountains and plants, Mdina Experience tells the 7,000 years of the city's history in multi-vision, presented in twelve languages (with headphones). This show lasts about 30 minutes and allows you to discover the cult of the mother goddess, the shipwreck of Saint Paul, the destruction of the medieval city by an earthquake and its reconstruction and defence by the Knights of Saint John. A show every hour.

Visit the glass factory and its showroom. Prices are set by the state, but some items with minor defects are sold out. Blown glass features colored marbling (green, red, blue) or inlays of gold or silver leaf. Here you'll find bottles, vases, eggs and animals, as well as a crystal department with glasses and decanters. Mdina Glass, the largest local producer of blown glass, also has stores in Valletta, Bugibba and the ferry terminal (Valletta Waterfront). Stores also in Mdina and Gozo (Victoria).

This is one of Rabat Mdina's most spectacular, yet little-known sites.

The catacombs, the grotto. The highlight of the visit is the grotto where St. Paul is said to have taken refuge on his arrival in Malta in the year 60, at the origin of the Christian community on the island! Pope John Paul himself came to visit his statue here. Not to take anything away from the myth, access to the grotto is via the adjacent catacombs. In the midst of narrow labyrinthine aisles, rock-cut tombs of all sizes follow one another, some with bone fragments still present, from the Punic (Carthaginian), Roman and Christian eras. Along the way, we discover the fallout shelters where many Maltese families lived during the bombings of the Second World War. Anxious and claustrophobic visitors are advised to abstain.

Museum. The visit is very complete, as this ticket also gives access to the rather vast and accessible Museum of Religious Art, located in the baroque palace of the great Master Aloph de Wignacourt (1601-1622). Just as dark and bloody as Valletta's Museum of Fine Arts (St. Paul beheaded or St. Agatha with her breasts cut off, two of the island's classics), it features religious paintings by Mattia Preti, Francesco and Antoine de Favray.

Probably the most interesting of the city's churches. Remodeled in 1638 by the architect Tomasso Dingli, it features many Baroque elements. It boasts some fine pieces of religious art, including paintings by Giuseppe Cali, sculptures by Melchiorre Gafà and Karlu Darmanin, and an altar by Portuguese sculptor Emmanuel Merreira. Some of these statues are taken out into the streets for the Good Friday procession.

Still along the road from the capital to Mdina, you'll no doubt notice the Wignacourt aqueduct. When Valletta was built in the ^16th century, it was realized that the drinking water supplied by the only usable spring (near the Grand Harbour) would soon be insufficient. So, in 1601, Grand Master Adolf de Wignacourt decided to bring water from the many springs in the hills around Mdina to Valletta. In 1610, the first project was an underground aqueduct as far as Attard, but the problems associated with the terrain soon proved insurmountable. Between Balzan and Hamrun, therefore, an overhead construction was preferred, consisting of a stone conduit mounted on arches, which can still be seen today. From Hamrun to the capital, water was once again transported underground. On August 21, 1615, Adolf de Wignacourt inaugurated the first fountain in Valletta. Another was also built in Floriana.

The original center of the village, around the church of St. George, served as a residence for the knights and has preserved some fine old houses, including the Palazzo Stagno. Built in 1589 for the Stagno family of Sicilian origin, it was mainly occupied by knights of the Order. Superb moldings around the windows, beautifully crafted facade, all in a rather orthodox, Maltese style, rather inspired by the Spanish colonial styles of Peru or Mexico, as the English architect Quentin Hughe would say about it.

Among the establishments involved in the economy of Attard are the ceramic factory behind the presidential palace and the Simonds Farsons brewery, which is located on the outskirts of the city, making the Kinnie aromatic drink and Maltese beer Cisk.

The very recent Sainte-Thérèse church, with its flying saucer appearance, has a modernity designed to impress, despite a slightly artisanal feel. Although originally dedicated to Saint Alphonsus, the local population continues to call it Sainte-Thérèse due to the presence of an urn bearing her effigy.

The old building was damaged by a lightning strike in 1959. The new one is now one of the island's most popular places of worship.

This complex is considered to be the most important Paleochristian funerary complex outside the Rabat region. These hypogea were first recorded in the late 1800s, but were only studied in 1933 by Captain Charles Zammit. Further studies were carried out in 2004, 2013 and 2014, and the site was opened to the public in 2015. It is 90 metres long and comprises 57 tombs in 16 chambers. An orientation center and audio guide help visitors to organize their visit.

This baroque and neoclassical palace of the th century is a beautiful work finely worked. Its beautifully restored fountain and its elegant garden do not remove anything from its charm. Offers a very pleasant tea lounge with freshly squeezed little cakes and oranges as well as pottery courses. Sale of organic vegetables with possibility to pick them up some days of the week.